Cooper Flagg edges Kon Knueppel in close NBA Rookie of the Year race

For the third time in franchise history, the Dallas Mavericks have an NBA Rookie of the Year.

Cooper Flagg, the No. 1 pick in last year’s draft, on Monday joined Jason Kidd (1995) and Luka Dončić (2019) as the only Mavericks players to earn the honor. Flagg narrowly beat out Kon Knueppel, his former college teammate and roommate at Duke, in one of the best Rookie of the Year award races in recent memory.

Flagg averaged 21 points, 6.7 rebounds, 4.5 assists, 1.2 steals and 0.9 blocks this season. He became the first rookie since Michael Jordan to lead his team in points, rebounds, assists and steals. Flagg’s versatility and historic performances — he scored 51 points in an April 3 game against the Orlando Magic, the most by a teenager in NBA history — helped give him the slight edge over Knueppel among voters.

“This is a truly great honor,” Flagg said via statement. “I’m grateful to receive this award and thankful to everyone in the Dallas Mavericks organization who believed in me from day one. None of this happens without my teammates, coaches and the people around me pushing me every day. I came here to compete and help this team win. This is just one step forward in what we’re building.”

Flagg earned 56 first-place votes (five points each) and 44 second-place votes (three). Knueppel finished with 44 first-place votes and 55 second-place votes. Philadelphia 76ers guard VJ Edgecombe placed third.

Knueppel, whom the Charlotte Hornets selected with the No. 4 pick, averaged 18.5 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.4 assists this season. His 273 3-point makes were the most in the NBA. Knueppel shattered the previous rookie record for 3-point makes in a season in February, surpassing Keegan Murray’s total of 206 from 2022-23, and also assisted in a dramatic Hornets turnaround. Charlotte got off to a 16-28 start but went 28-10 the rest of the way. Alongside lead ballhandler LaMelo Ball and bucket-getting forward Brandon Miller, Knueppel helped the Hornets (44-38) finish with a winning record for only the second time in the last decade.

Knueppel’s scoring efficiency and contributions on a winning team were major reasons why Hornets coach Charles Lee pushed hard for him to win Rookie of the Year before Charlotte and Dallas faced each other in March.

“I don’t even think it’s close,” Lee said then.

Mavericks players and coaches countered that Knueppel was a more efficient scorer than Flagg because of the different roles they played. Knueppel was a secondary creator for Charlotte and benefited from playing alongside Ball. Flagg was the Mavericks’ primary offensive engine who frequently drew double-teams.

“It’s two different ballparks,” Mavericks forward P.J. Washington said in April. “He’s 19, doing what he’s doing. Being the main guy is a lot harder than being a rotational player hitting corner shots or just hitting 3s. He’s initiating most of our offense. To be 19 doing that is unheard of.”

The only head-to-head matchup of the season between Flagg and Knueppel, played Jan. 29 in Dallas, produced fireworks. Flagg scored 49 points and grabbed 10 rebounds. Knueppel connected on eight 3-pointers on his way to scoring a season-high 34 points.

While the Hornets won that game 123-121, Knueppel admitted afterward that Flagg might have seized the upper hand in the Rookie of the Year race.

“I think he might jump me with 49 and 10,” Knueppel said. “It is what it is. If he gets it, I’ll be happy for him.”

However, by late February, Knueppel appeared to be the favorite to win the award, as the Hornets kept winning games and Flagg was sidelined with a left foot sprain in eight consecutive contests. Flagg returned to the court in early March and played in 70 games. Knueppel missed only one game all season.

Flagg played some of his best basketball in the final two weeks of the regular season, which could have swayed any voters who remained undecided. He scored 45 points, grabbed eight rebounds and handed out nine assists in the Mavericks’ April 5 win over the Los Angeles Lakers. In Dallas’ second-to-last regular-season game, he scored 33 points in 32 minutes against Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs. By then, the Mavericks had long been eliminated from postseason contention.

The Hornets secured the Eastern Conference’s No. 9 seed, but their season came to an end when they suffered a blowout loss to the Orlando Magic in the Play-In Tournament. It’s possible Knueppel’s Rookie of the Year case took a hit in the Play-In, as he scored a combined 17 points on 5-of-22 shooting across two games. Voters weren’t supposed to consider any postseason action, but ballots weren’t due until after the Play-In was already underway due to the NBA needing extra time to make a ruling on which players would be eligible for end-of-season awards because of the 65-game rule.

As college teammates, Flagg and Knueppel led Duke to a 35-4 record and a Final Four appearance. As they took the next step in their careers and competed against each other for Rookie of the Year, they remained close.

“I know we’ll both be in this league for a long time,” Flagg said in January. “It’s pretty special. That’s my brother for life.”